Free Republic

Please click the link posted below. There seems to be no problem with a culture remembering their history in a way that might be deemed offensive (the severed heads of Muslims) to others. Furthermore, there doesn’t seem to be any problems with this flag in Spain and Europe. However, one would have to say it seems a bit strong and direct when compared to the confederate flag and issues surrounding its display.

“Reality therapy,” declared Time magazine’s Michael Duffy with satisfaction. “A chance to think anew,” added Newsweek’s Jon Meacham. These and similarly warm words of welcome from organs of respectable opinion greeted the December arrival of the long-awaited report of the Iraq Study Group (ISG), with its 79 prescriptions for U.S. policy in the Middle East. The sense of relief was palpable. With neoconservatism supposedly repudiated by the “fiasco” of Iraq, the backing of a wise man’s council composed equally of Republicans and Democrats, and a friendly media breeze in its sails, the ISG report was heralded not just as...

December 20, 2006, 6:28 a.m. Realism, Iraq, and the Bush DoctrineSome clarification is desperately needed. By Mackubin Thomas Owens The release of the Iraq Study Group (ISG) report has caused the chattering classes to swoon over the “return of the realists.” Now the spectacle of people who loathe Henry Kissinger and the memory of Richard Nixon celebrating the virtues of foreign-policy “realism” is truly amusing and indicates a lack of seriousness on the part of critics of the Bush administration in their to approach the Iraq War. Of course, the critics’ embrace of realism is cynical — just another...

Fouad Ajami sums up the situation better than anyone else. He diagnoses the real problems of the region while midget-twerps like Matt Lauer and Brian Williams pontificate on how Iraq has become a "civil war:" The sin of George W. Bush, to hear his critics tell it, is that he unleashed the forces of freedom in Arab-Islamic lands only to beget a terrible storm. In Iraq and in Lebanon, the furies of sectarianism are on the loose; and in that greater Middle East stretching from Pakistan to Morocco, the forces of freedom and reform appear chastened. Autocracy is fashionable once...

Foreign policy realism is ascendant these days, we are told. This would be encouraging if true, because our foreign policy must indeed be realistic. But what passes for "realism" today has very little to do with reality. Indeed, if you look at some of the "realist" proposals on the table, "realism" has come to be a kind of code word for surrendering American interests and American allies, as well as American principles, in the Middle East. Thus, the "realists" advise us to seek Syria's help in Iraq even as the Syrian government engages in a concerted campaign of assassinating every...

Surrender as 'Realism' Retreat would win us no friends and lose us no adversaries. Foreign policy realism is ascendant these days, we are told. This would be encouraging if true, because our foreign policy must indeed be realistic. But what passes for "realism" today has very little to do with reality. Indeed, if you look at some of the "realist" proposals on the table, "realism" has come to be a kind of code word for surrendering American interests and American allies, as well as American principles, in the Middle East. Thus, the "realists" advise us to seek Syria's help in...

The time has come to speak of what "Realism" means in international affairs. Historically, realism has been the core of diplomatic practice. This concept says that countries rationally formulate their national interests and pursue them. These interests are defined in material, not sentimental, terms - obtaining or holding security, territory and economic assets. As an explicit doctrine this arose in Europe. America has always had some trouble accepting this approach. It often seeks to inject ideas and values into its foreign policy. If George W. Bush is only the latest example of this (promoting democracy), it is a concept central...

'Free to lose' isn't good philosophy for the right wing November 19, 2006 BY MARK STEYN Sun-Times Columnist If Milton Friedman had to die, then a week after the defeat of a Republican Congress that had apparently forgotten every lesson Friedman taught in Free To Choose is eerily apt timing. As it happens, had ill health not intervened, Professor Friedman would have been disembarking round about now from a National Review post-election cruise with yours truly and various other pundits and commentators. Instead, we were obliged to sail without him, and in the days that followed I found myself wondering...

I once had a meal with a man who had been a Republican operative. He was lamenting the factionalism within that party, and as an example told the story of some Christian evangelicals. They had come to him offering to support his candidate providing the candidate agreed with them on 15 points. "In politics, you don't get all 15 points," he said. "Maybe you get eight of them. You have to be satisfied with that. These people didn't understand that." To them, each of the 15 was connected to Truth, and was not negotiable. There was no agreement, and no...

At the VDH-apolooza at the Kennedy School last night, Professor Hanson’s sparring partner was Lawrence Korb, one-time Undersecretary of State in the Reagan administration. I didn’t know much about Korb until last night, but it became rather apparent that he was an unrepentant member of the so-called “Realist” school of foreign policy when he lamented the fact that the current Bush administration doesn’t listen to Brent Scowcroft. When Korb mentioned his fondness for Scowcroft, only the fact that I was seated in the Press section prevented me from giving the mere mention of Scowcroft’s name the Haman treatment. (That’s one...

SANTA FE, N.M. - America needs a "new realism" in its foreign policy and a concerted push for energy independence to safeguard national security, New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, a former U.N. ambassador, said Saturday. "What the Bush administration has failed to understand is that while diplomacy without power is weak, power without diplomacy is blind," Richardson said in the Democrats' weekly radio address. Richardson pointed to fighting between Israel and Hezbollah militants, escalating violence in Iraq, the stalemate with North Korea over its missile and nuclear programs and rising oil prices as evidence that "the world around us in...

In a father's experience, perfection Shorewood artist's work earns top award in national contest By MARY LOUISE SCHUMACHERmschumacher@journalsentinel.com Posted: June 23, 2006 Whether painting the wrinkled face of a farmer, the long shadows cast by a man shoveling snow or the inquisitive face of his young son, Shorewood artist David Lenz wants to tell the truth through images that are as close to reality as possible. David Lenz Courtesy of National Portrait Gallery"Sam and the Perfect World" depicts David Lenzs 9-year-old son and won the top prize in a National Portrait Gallery competition. Archived Coverage In January and February of...

THE U.S. AGENDA to promote democracy in the Middle East appears fatally wounded. The results of recent elections in Iraq, Egypt and especially Gaza and the West Bank have led many to conclude that this agenda is terribly misguided: wonderful in theory but disastrous in practice, enabling the most dangerous and antidemocratic elements in the region to gain power through democratic means. If true, this is certainly a worrisome turn of events. Can the skeptics be right? Is it simply too dangerous to promote freedom in the Arab world? Must the United States give up on promoting democracy and go...

As the Christmas is getting closer I've been having off and on discussions with family about the country's future. I am only 23 and grew up under Clinton so my personal view of American politics (and government) is jaded to compared to that of my father and others who experienced Reagan. Do you still believe that America's best days are ahead? With so many domestic enemies (not to mention terrorists) will the USA survive in tact? I am wary of hyperbole and I know that we as a country have faced dark days before (the Civil War) but I truly...

The Hugh Hewitt Show is heard on 112 radio stations nationwide. You may obtain information about affiliates by e-mailing: johagan@hughhewitt.com. Location Call Letters Frequency Show Times Ashburn, GA WTIF 107.5 6-9 PM Sat., Sun Atlanta, GA WLTA 1400 AM 10-12 PM WNIV 970 AM 10-12 PM WGKA 1190 AM 6-9 PM - "Best of" 7-10 Sat. Bakersfield, CA KNZR 1560 AM 7-10 PM Baltimore, MD WITH 1230 AM 6-9 PM Bartlesville, OK KWON 1400 AM 7 PM Black Mountain, NC WFGW 1010 AM 6-9 PM Boone, IA KFFF 1260 AM 99.3 FM 5-8 PM Boston, MA WTTT 1150 AM 6-9...

The Hugh Hewitt Show is heard on 112 radio stations nationwide. You may obtain information about affiliates by e-mailing: johagan@hughhewitt.com. Location Call Letters Frequency Show Times Ashburn, GA WTIF 107.5 6-9 PM Sat., Sun Atlanta, GA WLTA 1400 AM 10-12 PM WNIV 970 AM 10-12 PM WGKA 1190 AM 6-9 PM - "Best of" 7-10 Sat. Bakersfield, CA KNZR 1560 AM 7-10 PM Baltimore, MD WITH 1230 AM 6-9 PM Bartlesville, OK KWON 1400 AM 7 PM Black Mountain, NC WFGW 1010 AM 6-9 PM Boone, IA KFFF 1260 AM 99.3 FM 5-8 PM Boston, MA WTTT 1150 AM 6-9...

The Hugh Hewitt Show is heard on 112 radio stations nationwide. You may obtain information about affiliates by e-mailing: johagan@hughhewitt.com. Location Call Letters Frequency Show Times Ashburn, GA WTIF 107.5 6-9 PM Sat., Sun Atlanta, GA WLTA 1400 AM 10-12 PM WNIV 970 AM 10-12 PM WGKA 1190 AM 6-9 PM - "Best of" 7-10 Sat. Bakersfield, CA KNZR 1560 AM 7-10 PM Baltimore, MD WITH 1230 AM 6-9 PM Bartlesville, OK KWON 1400 AM 7 PM Black Mountain, NC WFGW 1010 AM 6-9 PM Boone, IA KFFF 1260 AM 99.3 FM 5-8 PM Boston, MA WTTT 1150 AM 6-9...

The Hugh Hewitt Show is heard on 112 radio stations nationwide. You may obtain information about affiliates by e-mailing: johagan@hughhewitt.com. Location Call Letters Frequency Show Times Ashburn, GA WTIF 107.5 6-9 PM Sat., Sun Atlanta, GA WLTA 1400 AM 10-12 PM WNIV 970 AM 10-12 PM WGKA 1190 AM 6-9 PM - "Best of" 7-10 Sat. Bakersfield, CA KNZR 1560 AM 7-10 PM Baltimore, MD WITH 1230 AM 6-9 PM Bartlesville, OK KWON 1400 AM 7 PM Black Mountain, NC WFGW 1010 AM 6-9 PM Boone, IA KFFF 1260 AM 99.3 FM 5-8 PM Boston, MA WTTT 1150 AM 6-9...

The Hugh Hewitt Show is heard on 112 radio stations nationwide. You may obtain information about affiliates by e-mailing: johagan@hughhewitt.com. Location Call Letters Frequency Show Times Ashburn, GA WTIF 107.5 6-9 PM Sat., Sun Atlanta, GA WLTA 1400 AM 10-12 PM WNIV 970 AM 10-12 PM WGKA 1190 AM 6-9 PM - "Best of" 7-10 Sat. Bakersfield, CA KNZR 1560 AM 7-10 PM Baltimore, MD WITH 1230 AM 6-9 PM Bartlesville, OK KWON 1400 AM 7 PM Black Mountain, NC WFGW 1010 AM 6-9 PM Boone, IA KFFF 1260 AM 99.3 FM 5-8 PM Boston, MA WTTT 1150 AM 6-9...

Mr. Stability The wrongness of Brent Scowcroft's realism. By Christopher Hitchens Posted Tuesday, Nov. 1, 2005, at 1:47 PM ET Scowcroft longs for the "peace" of Saddam's regime The sole point of the non-findings of the Fitzgerald non-investigation, into the non-commission of non-crimes and the non-outing of a non-covert CIA bureaucrat, is (as Messrs. Kerry, Krugman, Rich, and others keep reminding us) that it might even yet trigger the long-awaited inquest into the Iraq intervention. I very strongly hope that there is a full-dress postmortem into this country's Iraq policy, though I am not ready to assume that "inquest" or...